Lyrics
I'm just hoping for the best
Waiting out of sight
The light is for the rest of them
still on their way tonight
Yes and you from the front room called
to someone in the hall
The light is for the rest of them
The soldiers are all joking
Smokin' in the dark
And the story of the sirens
wakes one with a start
Yes and you'n talked around the table hushed
stood to leave it well enough
The soldiers are all smokin' in the dark
I would never ask you twice
it would never come to mind
To leave you with this night alone
or take it from you blind
All alone I speak my peace
To be anything, but kind
I really wish that he was here tonight
And I wake to the fire that falls
beside you as you sleep
The faces on the wall
more company than I could keep
Yes and you hold a ribbon in your hand
and a picture from back then
Beside you as you sleep
I'm just hoping for the best
I'm just hoping for the best
Sometime during the '90's, I traveled to Austin, TX for the SXSW music conference. My sister lived on the corner of Red River & First Street, in Austin. I slept on her living room floor and staged my operations from there. Armed with a wristband, pair of Tony Lama's, a show schedule, and money for bus fares... I covered as much ground as I could, that week, in Austin. I saw Alex Chilton in a tent show, and Mathew Sweet playing on a big stage out in the street. But more than anything, this Texas Blues fan wanted to see Doyle Bramhall perform live.
Doyle Bramhall was scheduled to play a show at the Austin City Music Hall. His band was opening for Lucinda Williams and The Jayhawks. Neither of whom was I very familiar with. Lucinda had Ian McLagan in her band. I was a Steve Marriot fan from way back, so I was interested in seeing Ian McLagan perform. The Jayhawks I had only read about. They were the subject of intense interest with the music journo's at the time, due to the Def American/Hollywood Town Hall, situation. So I decided to make a night of it at the Music Hall and see all three bands.
It was a great night of entertainment. I thoroughly enjoyed Doyle and Lucinda. I watched the roadies set up the stage for the headliners, The Jayhawks, and noted the lead guitarists' rig included a Fender Deluxe Amp and Fuzz Face. That set up was a little eyebrow raising, you didn't see guitar players using a pedal like that in those days. The Jayhawks started their set with 'Two Angels'. Mark Olsen stepped into the spotlight strumming a Martin (or was it a Gibson?) and blowing a harp mounted in a neck holder. He looked a little ragged. Oddly, I remember he was wearing a worn dusty pair of leather shoes. The whole thing oozed with what I could only imagine was the ghost of Woody Guthrie. That band rocked me. I didn't really know anything about this 'Alt-Country' thing before that night. I went in there as a die-hard blues-rocker. That show was the beginning of my conversion as a musician, into something else. Something resembling a more well rounded practitioner, of other styles of music. I started to see myself as, maybe, an Americana Guitar Picker? If you will?
I picked up a copy of Hollywood Town Hall, shortly after that night. The liner notes for that album were written by Joe Henry. I was curious to know who he was. "I've known this fella all my life, or someone just like him..." I found a copy of Joe Henry's album, 'Kindness Of The World', and became a fan of his songs. Fast forward to the end of The Jayhawks early years, just before the departure of Mark Olsen, I caught the original lineup of the band at The Troubador, in Hollywood. The Jayhawks were joined for sit-in's by label-mates Chris Robinson, Marc Ford, and... Joe Henry. I had a chance to meet and speak with Joe Henry after the show. A true gentleman. I wish I would have thought to ask him, "who is Martin?".
I probably came away from that show with more questions than I went there with. My curiosity about these alt-country bands grew. At the shows I went to, I looked for the names of bands I hadn't heard of, on the stickers plastered onto the road cases at the side of the stage. I'd go to Tower Records armed with the names of these bands, and hunt down their records. Son Volt. Blue Mountain, The Bottle Rockets. I ended up seeing all these bands live.
Kindness Of The World is a great record. I am still drawn in by the opening line, every time I put on my copy of that CD. The final track on the CD is "Untitled" (and was the inspiration for this blog posting). It's a beautiful song that resonates somewhere deep inside me, when I hear it. It leaves me with that same feeling of curiosity. I wanted to read the lyrics. But they're not on the CD jacket, and I couldn't find them on the 'net. So I used the time-honored method of just sitting down, and writing them down myself. I did see on the net, that some people refer to this song as 'Ghost'. I can see why, after writing down the lyrics. But like everything else with these guys, I'm left with more questions. The music is lovely, but I think it's the mystery that keeps me here. Who knows? It's all a mystery, anyways, right?
